Time flies so fast. I just turned 10 in blogging. In 2007, I got curious about blogging and started a blog.

Things were never on my side before. I was never fortunate to get in the school paper. This failure in high school led me to explore the young internet. In early 2000 I tried creating my very own website from free platforms like tripod.com and in January of 2007 I decided to create my very first blog post in blogger.com and since then the rest is history.

A decade has passed and I’ve gained a lot of lessons Learned. I mean insights to be specific. It’s much easier to establish a blog today compared to 10 years ago. There were less resources back then. You really have to delve into the internet and learn from scratch.

Through the decade, I’ve learned a lot of lessons and here I am today sharing a few to the aspiring Bloggers and noob bloggers.

Experiment. Start your blog by experimenting. Never be a perfectionist. Be patient. Apply all the things that you’ve learned from all your reading or any Blogging seminar.

Find your voice and topic. As you slowly create and publish your articles or blog posts, you will experiment on your delivery or medium. Write from your heart and blog what you really like. In 6 months time, blogging will surely be easy peasy for you. Always remember to be you.

Blog only on the things you’ve experience. A blog could be a personal journal. One time I tried writing a blog post on a local pizza store and asked for pictures from a fellow blogger. A couple of readers and friends dropped a comment saying it wasn’t tasty and I did not know how to reply. It was a lesson learned.

Acknowledge your sources and remember that it’s bad to copy and paste. One time another blogger overseas sent me an email that I used his photo without credit. The reality is I just copied the photo from Google. Remember, what you think is bad will remain bad. Never plagiarize and make sure you cite sources properly.

Promote your blog offline and online. The best way to get readers is actually through word of mouth and online promotion. I even sent group messages to friends in early 2007 telling them that I have a website and check out my blog. I was a spammer but eventually it worked – people knew my blog address. In 2017, blog promotion is easy peasy with social media.

Be consistent. Awards and recognitions did not come immediately. Actually, years for me. Plus it came as a surprise. Being able to share your experience consistently will big following and attention slowly. Be patient. Again, write from the heart, be consistent and for sure these rewards will come in due time.

Lastly, connect with other bloggers. Read their blogs. Drop a comment and meet them in person. You will learn from other bloggers too. I thank the CDO Bloggers, Pauline Ligeralde for proofreading my posts and my blog mentors for guiding me all these years. I believe I’m a better version of myself from 2007.

To master one thing requires patience, perseverance and the willingness to learn.

Let’s connect. I’m @vicmadz on Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat and Vic Madriaga on YouTube and Facebook. You may also subscribe to the blog newsletter to be updated with my latest posts. Feel free to contact me here too.

This is the expanded version of my weekly newspaper column at Urban Life Mindanao Gold Star Daily – the biggest newspaper in Mindanao.

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